Your Crohn's Disease Stories: January - June 2010
Here are some stories from visitors like you sent in this year. Read through them...they just may inspire you or teach you something you didn't know about Crohn's Disease and how it affects those who suffer from it on a daily basis.
Share your Crohn's Disease story here
You can also post comments and questions on our Crohn's Disease Forum.
1st half of 2010 contributions
"When I was 27 years old and about to be married, I was having difficulties with fatigue and nausea, and diarrhea. I went to my primary and he said I had a virus. I came back a month later with same symptoms. At that time Prozac was being pushed for everything from headaches to depression. I had no idea what it was, new drug in late 80's, so i took it.
I began to feel less fatigue and more pumped up than ever. I woke from a dead sleep one night and was having hallucinations, followed by vomiting and extreme diarrhea, with straining and cramping. Again went to different Dr. and he said do not stop taking the Prozac, and actually increased my dosage to the maximum. He said it was mental since he could find nothing else "visibly" wrong with me. I went to a shrink, and naturally by this time i was so rattled up I was actually having some depression.
After a year or two of being convinced that the reason I never felt well was in my head, I bought in to it and went into a very deep depression that required hospitalization. When I was admitted they ask me what was the main reason I felt depressed? Easy, I NEVER FEEL GOOD! I have frequent diarrhea, and upset stomach and always feel sick. More mind meds, eventually released and back on the right track. Switched family Dr.'s again, did not want to believe that a mental disorder could cause such physical symptoms, I have since learned that they can, keep reading.
He began treatment for prostatitis, because of where I was having the most pain. Lots of antibiotics, actuall seemed to help Cipro was the one he used most. Easrly 90's now and still no relief. Went to the only GI Dr. in town and scheduled a colonoscopy, due to some rectal bleeding i was having following a night of straining and cramping. IBS was his diagnosis and gave me some diet tips. Another depression hospitalization in the late 90's followed by loss of my extremely stressful job (I quit). Took a year off working to get to know my young family again.
Still never felt great, would have a week or two of feeling ok and then a month or two of not so good, always something in my stomach and or diarrhea, nausea and sometimes fever and flushing? High blood pressure forced me to switch Dr.s once again, now a family friend who happened to be a cardiologist. At first prescribed small dosages to lower my blood pressure, no response, increase dosage, very little response, high dosage blood pressure lower, he was puzzled how much medication it took. I'm not sure but it could be because I was not absorbing all the meds. Many visits to him with lower back pain, felt like my kidney's were going to burst, stomach pain, nausea. A virus he said.
I ask him how many times a person could get the same virus, cause i know I have had this one for about 15 years now on and off. He was aware of my medical history with mental illness and blew me off, with "you have had these issues before". So here I go, no where again, at this point i am convinced that I have a mental disease causing all these symptoms. Christmas 2010, symptoms back worse than ever, and my mental health has not been too bad, so, strong again i go back to the Dr. Skipped my primary and straight to GI, different one this time. Start with endoscopy, stomach clear,suspects IBS. Two weeks colonoscopy, low and behold Crohns disease. I had no idea what it was?
After reading up on it, it all began to make sense, i have had this disease or some form of it for the last 25 years! I am not nuts, Crohns was the cause of the depression all along. Only problem it's May now and this episode has not let up yet. 3000mg daily of Pentasa, and very little relief.
Back to the Dr. tomorrow. I had a small sense of relief once the dignosos was confirmed, yet a whole lot of anger, too many of our good Dr.s are trying to save too much money by diagnosing, based on a hunch or a past condition, with out eliminating the possibilities, in other words, you can talk to them, but they aint listening! one final thought, THIS SUCKS! I want so bad to feel good again and be the happy person that i am, or once was. I pray God for a cure or remission."
Thank you for sharing your story.
"My name is LaDawna. I started off with rectal bleeding. I thought I had hemroids. Slight bleeding. That was around January or Febuary of 2000. I started off with severe stomach pains, and difficulty having a bowel movement. Over the course of about a month. The bleeding got increasingly worse. Along with the pain. I had made a appointment with a specialist. But they couldn't get me in for a month.
When things got worse. I said that I had to get in now. I had my first colonoscopy march of 2000. I was first diagnosed with ulcerated colitis. But not sure if it was crohn's. I remember having diareah and a bad cold/cough. The regular doctor's treated me with antibiotic and cough medicine. About a week before moving to the south. I went back to the doctor for my cold/cough. For some reason.
The combination of the antibiotic( which causes diareah) and the codine which was in the cough medicine ( which normally causes constipation). Seem to equal me out. I remember feeling very tired, drained,not wanting to eat. Or I didn't dare eat. Heat on my back seem to make the pain feel a little better. I had a great doctor in the south. Who said that I have crohn's. I've been dealing with crohn's for ten years now. I'm on asacol, prednisone, and nexium. I've tried rowasa enimas.
They didn't work. Because of lack of rectal control. I couldn't keep the medicine in. So I've tried canasa suppositories. Much better to obtain. I'm allergic to remicade. So that's not an option. I've learned through trial and error. Like most crohn's sufferers. You learn what you can eat and not eat. Everyone is different. I do take many different vitamin suppliments. To help. I'm not a smoker or a drinker. I do drink alot of water. The things that would cause me problems. Are, spicy, fatty,fried, some dairy( eggs, ice cream, milk,) I switched to soy milk. Stress tends to add to my problems. Lack of sleep. But taking prednisone doesn't help with the lack of sleep.
One book that I try to go by is,Prescription for Nutritional Healing. Look up Crohn's Disease in this book. It can give you an idea on how to go about dealing with crohn's. I hope that I'm able to help anyone who is struggling with crohn's have a better understanding of the disease. Like other crohn's sufferers. Read up on the disease. And finding a good doctor.
Thanks for your contribution, LaDawna.
"I was 13 years old when i first started expriencing syptoms of Crohns Disease. It started of with diarrhoea, everything I ate came back out. I couldnt even hold liquids in my stomach. This carried on for a month but I didnt want to sound like a hypochondriac at home so I kept quiet about it. I was constantly tired, couldn't get up for school, always upset, my mother just thought i was being a difficult teenager.
A month later, I went to the loo and noticed white sticky stuff and then a few weeks later the bleeding started. The white sticky stuff i found out later was mucus. It was then that i started to panic. I felt dizzy all the time, couldn't stand for longer than a few minutes, the fatigue continued and something else started - blackouts. It was then my mother realised something was wrong and asked me what was going on and i broke down with relief and told her i was bleeding and had very bad diarrhoea.
She asked me how long i'd been suffering by this time it had been nearly 3 months of hell. My GP referred me to a consultant and i was put on steriods (prednisone i think) and then Asacol. My iron levels were so low that i had to have an iron transfusion. They did a colonoscopy (not pleasant), and i carried on seeing my consultant for about 3 years till my sypmtoms disappeared. This was 6 years ago. I'm 22 now, 2 years ago my symptoms reappeared but not as badly as my first episode. I have a very weak bowel, i don't get constant diarrhoea but i open my bowels at least 4 times a day. Nothing seems to settle in my stomach, i've completely lost my appetite which saddens me because after being well for so many years i thoroughly started to enjoy my food. I'm always tired, getting out of bed is such a struggle for me in the mornings.
22 and my social life is nearly over as i haven't got the energy to party. I've started experiencing sharp pains in my bottom and joint pains in my legs. So i have been back to see a consultant at the hospital and i'm back on Asacol (for a long time) also got a colonoscopy schedueled for 3 weeks time. I'm hoping that Asacol will give me the 'lift' that i need and i can go back to a 'normal' life.
Keep searching for something that works...the solution is out there.
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October 2008 to December 2008.
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